Kaijudo: The Convergence
by veilkinder
Summary: "Six Months Ago, The Impossible Happened" ... and now, a Trading Card Game with similarly unearthly connects had surfaced. ((Read Now: Chapter 01 :: "The Expected: Part 1"))
1. Prologue - A Night To Remember

_**"Six months ago, the impossible happened and everything changed."**_

The intense light of the city shone across the strait in-through the cover of cherry blossom trees, giving the cold, moonless night sky a faint sign of vitality. Billowing gusts swayed to the contours of a bluish-silver coupe' with each turn of winding road in the country-side. The blond-haired woman at the wheel negotiated the car onto a busy bridge over the strait, then briefly glanced left at her napping teenage son with midnight blue hair and three bleach-blond streaks across both sides and smiled.

She shook the boy awake and uttered, _"Have you ever seen such a sight?"_

The bright radiance of civilization found his eyes and he awoke in awe, wiping away the sleep to dispel disbelief. _"We rarely get out of the city to visit your grandparents, so until next time...,"_ she chuckled and continued, _"...get an eye-full. This is a memory that will last forever."_

 _"You're right, I've never seen it at night like this - it's astounding. Hey Mom, how much farther til we reach home? I'm getting hungry,"_ the young man spoke anxiously as he looked toward his mother. His mother chuckled without restraint then responded, _"Not long now, just across the way."_

 _ **"They said that no one saw it coming..."**_

The teenager nodded before his sights met another marvel - the strait's calm waters painted by the skylights - and a familiar amazement returned to him.

 _ **"...yet there's fault to be found beyond that glimmer once called endless,..."**_

From atop the highest skyscraper flashed a hue of multiple colors before all lights faded into the void of night. All around, the lights on the bridge too dimmed to black and the sound of screeching tires and colliding metal soon followed; the boy's mother coaxed the coupe' to a stop.

 _ **"...I'm sure of it."**_

 _"Mom, what's happening,"_ the bewildered teenager asked.

His mother jutted her head to-and-fro in survey of the bridge, meeting the sight of roiling fragments of ground in the rear-view mirror. Without hesitation, she threw the coupe' into drive, spun out, then sped down the bridge, dodging vehicles and people along the way. More roils manifested on the distant shore, a loud roar echoed from the strong wind gusts, heralding a shadowy figure that formed out of mid-air.

The coupe' negotiated the wide stretch of road with each painstaking swerve made to avoid the abandoned cars along the bridge. _"Get in the back,"_ the teenager's mother commanded. With no questions asked, the boy unbuckled his seat-belt and hoisted himself into the back seats.

Louder grew the roil's roar, attracting his mother's gaze upon the mirror again to witness a shadowy figure - a huge two-headed dragon with towering necks, massive wingspan, and three sets of glowing red eyes - gliding above. With eyes widened in fear, she accelerated in vain to widen distance between them and it. "Stay down dear, everything will be okay," she told her son under her breath.

Upward and forward the figure then soared to the threshold of the bridge as the coupe' closed in. Swooping down with a shadow drawn, cutting support beams and tearing up asphalt, it outstretched its necks and widened both jowls, closing in on its speedy prey.

With majestic flair, a radiant light from the highest pinnacle pierced night's darkness and the figure poofed into smoke; the skylights of the city shined far and wide again.

With too little time to react, the coupe' met with collapsing bridge and careened off, plummeting it toward the strait's sandy shore. In a last ditch effort, the mother unlatched her seat belt and climbed in back with her son, holding onto him as they lied out on the seats. She struggled to say with tears in her eyes, _"Everything... will be... okay."_

The boy yelled in anguish, _"Mom!"_

A crash resounded beneath the bridge from the coupe' colliding with the cold strait shore below.

 **=========================  
\- KAIJUDO: THE CONVERGENCE -  
=========================**


	2. Chapter 01 - The Expected: Part 1

_**"But now with all other avenues shrouded in obscurity, what's there left to follow but the most obvious path?"**_

 *** Tokyo, Japan; Mizukabe Stadium : November 13, 2015; 12:35p.m. ***

On this pleasant, bright day, the city thrived as a momentous event was beginning; the footsteps and clamoring of patrons, young and old, congregated toward the large, white pentagonal stadium near the bay. With a massive banner hanging upon its entrance-way reading "The Civ Clash Competition Begins Today!," it's no wonder optimistic words like _"This is going to be awesome..."_ resonated from many passer-bys on the way to and through the stadium's doors.

Its corridors, while a bland greyish-white donning some decor and quiet on most days, brimmed with life as all manner of adults and children rushed through, hoping to find favorable seats in the stands.

 _ **"Or way..."**_

The inner arena, no less a marvel than its exterior, shined in brilliance from the sunroof with rays of the sun glaring down from on high. The arena floor adorned from its five walls with many tables lined parallel to them in numerous rows and above each stand, two banners, equidistant from each other, with an emblem representing a civilization of the game, and a different creature to fill its space.

 _ **"The Way of the Strange Beast - Kaijudo."**_

============================================================  
KAIJUDO: THE CONVERGENCE - Chapter 01 :: "The Expected: Part 1" / START  
============================================================

From the center of the arena, roughly fifteen feet in mid-air, floated a pentagonal platform with gold, blue, purple, red and green lights shining down on the arena floor in beautiful presentation. Upon the platform stood a man and a woman both with blueish-white hair - announcers from the looks of it - and as the lady spoke, she rose her right arm high and her right leg arm bent with foot upon the lower railing. She snapped her left hand's fingers and brought her hand down into a fist pump as she finished speaking.

 **\- Female Announcer -**  
 _"Ladies and gentlemen of all ages, it's our pleasure to welcome you all to the Civ Clash Competition for the Kaijudo Trading Card Game! Make some noise!"_

Without restraint, the crowd roared and a wide smile painted her face. She gazed left at her male counterpart as he inserted himself into the torrent of elation, easing his torso forward on the top rail as he does.

 **\- Male Announcer -**  
 _"Absolutely! With fans and duelists alike flocking in from all across the country, it is with no doubt that this tournament is shaping up to be the best competition yet this season."_

He stared at the lady at his right, who returns a gaze in kind, before speaking again, resetting his sights upon the audience upon conclusion.

 **\- Male Announcer -**  
 _"Speaking of which, as commentators for this season, I believe introductions are in order."_

The cheering elevates. Many individuals in the crowd attempted to shout in vain at the announcers while others whistled and chanted.

 **\- Female Announcer -**  
 _"No arguments from me. Feel free to start us off."_

 **\- Male Announcer -**  
 _"Certainly! Ahem..."_

Within no time, the man raised his left hand to his chest with palm open; much sincerity exited his lips to sate the audience's waiting ears.

 **\- Satoru -**  
 _"As I have been called many gracious names over these last few months, I humbly ask that you call me Satoru."_

Cheering echoed throughout the arena in great fervor. A number of young ladies in the crowd swooned and waved at Satoru. He returned a smile and outstretched his left arm toward his counterpart with palm up and opened.

 **\- Satoru -**  
 _"And it is with great pleasure to introduce this ever so energetic young woman. Known as the 'Lady of the Microphone,' give a round of applause for the lovely Enja!"_

The chorus of the crowd grew louder than before with the "oohs" and "ahhs" taking the bass, alongside all the wolf-whistling from an assortment of boys and men among them. Highly verbose statements like _"You're the best baby"_ and _"Marry me Enja!"_ were tell-tale signs that Enja was obviously popular. Even a cheering boy's girlfriend had grabbed his ear to bring him under control, the poor dunce.

The slightly overwhelmed Enja cracked a smile and proceeded as expected of a professional.

 **\- Enja -**  
 _"Thank you Satoru! With over two hundred duelists in attendance today, we'll kick this competition off with several rounds of single elimination!"_

As excitement mounted in the stands above, players and tournament officials flooded onto the arena floor from the three entrances below. Various spectators were pointing players out, whether they were friends or relatives is anyone's guess, but they seemed rather excited by the sheer number that entered.

Especially one black-haired boy donned in a blue-shirt and white pants with a red carrying bag hanging off his left waist from a black strap across his chest and right shoulder, chilling near the Nature section's guard rails in survey of the participants, eagerly looking on with squinty yellow eyes. A touchpad caressed in his left hand that he checked every-so-often.

 **\- Black-Haired Boy -**  
 _"Would you look at that turnout?! Wow, they'll be running the gauntlet the whole way through the preliminaries for sure!"_

The boy widened his eyes and leered over his right shoulder at his red-headed female friend wearing a short-sleeved white dress shirt, stylized knee-long skirt and matching tie, and round frame glasses, sitting in her seat looking on. She stood abruptly and inched slowly closer to the rails. The boy straightened his stance and gave her his undivided attention, which she made full use of as she glanced left and down at him; she's quite a few inches taller than him.

 **\- Glasses Girl -**  
 _"As it stands, I agree. Now if they don't have the willpower to endure this, then I simply can't be bothered to question their motives behind entering in the first place."_

 **\- Black-Haired Boy -**  
 _"Harue..."_

She darting her eyes momentarily across the sight and crossed her arms at her stomach.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"More importantly, why are you astonished? We both know Kaijudo's been on the up-and-up for three months now. The hype's real yet the thought that the player-base thrived this much still escapes people. Don't be such a kid, Michino."_

Harue shifted her head and gaze at Michino, who had lowered his head slightly as he spoke in a defeated tone.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"I, um... it's just that it was a rogue game for two months before its momentum spiked. We only just found out about it a month ago so the novelty hadn't subsided yet. And..."_

His head jerked up to see Harue's face and those sharp green eyes glaring at him. Suddenly, Michino looked the other way and continued, raising the touchpad in his left hand and drawing a circle on the black screen with his right index finger.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"... and, um, we are still kids?"_

Harue exhaled a sigh, lowered her arms then massaged her temples with the thumb and middle finger of the right hand. She left-faced toward Michino and spoke more calmly.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Today hasn't been kind at all and what I've done since was take my frustration out on you. I too haven't been kind and I'm sorry for that, Michi."_

In the distance, players are finding their positions with the help of the tournament staff. The crowd continue to whoop it while Satoru and Enja exchange words between themselves and the ground floor helpers.

Michino turned to face Harue, depositing the touchpad quickly into the bag draped at his left side as he spoke. Harue dropped her right hand to her waist.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Uh uh, I can't begin to imagine how stressful it is for you but I know you just needed to let off steam. So don't sweat it, Class President."_

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Michino, you..."_

Leering left to the ground floor, Michino changed the topic immediately.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"I read an intriguing rumor on The Blog earlier, about the Champion being here today."_

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Mhmm, the chirps were up-to-eleven about that several hours ago. But seriously though, a Champion already?! My mind can't begin to approach how and why that's a thing."_

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"A win's a win, to put it simply. A stifled attendance brought on by the new semester coupled with a skill-gap so few and far between - the ideal battlefield for any opportunist, like him. Can't recall his name though."_

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Whoever he is, it's safe to assume he's not competing in a junior division event."_

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Agreed. Speaking of competing, do you think **he's**..."_

Harue interrupts aloud with a right-fist slightly raised.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"He better show after ditching us all month!"_

Her shouting attracted the attention of several patrons nearby and she glanced toward them before lowering her hands onto the guard railing. Michino scratched his head and slightly bowed apologetically at the people, then responded, straightening up and setting his sights on Harue again.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Hey now, he has his reasons... I mean, after everything..."_

Not getting anywhere and only making Harue even angrier, Michino looked for anything to get her now sharp gaze off him. He pointed toward the arena floor instinctively and shouted.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Oh, there he is! No, wait. Wrong guy."_

He chuckled nervously and smiled with eyes closed. Harue sighed - the situation was defused for the time being, good job Michino. The search continued.

There was no short of chatter from the on-lookers in the Water section's lower tier, waving and sizing up players on the arena floor, who were at the home stretch of final preparations for the preliminaries. However one such duelist - a fairly tanned, lavender-eyed kid with white hair with a red fade to his left dressed in a red shirt and black pants with a green deck-box strapped to his left bicep by a white band - wasted no time getting hyped, with stretches and running in place, this kid had too much energy. His opponent standing across the table from him didn't share in his enthusiasm, in fact, this opponent looked weary for some reason. Looking at his right wrist, Shohei admired the detail in his wristband, which represented Fire with its flame emblem.

 **\- Tanned Kid -**  
 _"Man, oh man, I'm so stoked! Hehe, my first time on the tournament scene and it feels great. The stories simply don't do it justice! I wonder who else will make it to the finals."_

Prompted by his curiosity, the kid leered to-and-fro and even spun around a time or two so as to overlook nothing. His face adorned a wide smile and he bobbed up and down as he spoke.

 **\- Tanned Kid -**  
 _"Who cares! This is gonna be fantastic. Hey man, what's with the expression?"_

His brown-haired opponent had glared at this kid for a solid minute through all his rambling that he couldn't stare any longer, as he lowered his head, his exhausted demeanor ever present in his words, staring intently at his Water wristband on the left hand.

 **\- Brown-Haired Opponent -**  
 _"Uh, this guy... Prelims haven't started yet and he's yapping on about the finals already. What's with him?"_

Having overheard this, the tanned kid ceased his activity and crossed his arms. Serious time.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Longer strides shorten distances to what you desire most. A step at a time or that funny sounding acronym, your pick. Not saying I'll come out on top, but I'll give it my all and so should you. So sayeth Shohei Kajiko!"_

 **\- Brown-Haired Opponent -**  
 _"So you say. Well then,..."_

Shohei's opponent's posture shifted to a more aggressive stance and he leaned over the table toward Shohei.

 **\- Brown-Haired Opponent -**  
 _"... I say I'll listen to what you said and say that I'm going all out! Whatcha say to that?!"_

Shohei mirrors his opponent with an equally forward pose, hunched over the table. A silence fell over the tabletop as both guys leered at one another; a stare-down, anyone? Shohei breaks the calm - if that's what one calls this tense moment - with a great big smile and retort.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"I'm down but you best own up to those words. Otherwise this will be awkward."_

Both grinned painfully wide and arched back with a loud laugh resonating from them both. Surrounding duelists' faces were canvased in confusion and nervousness as they looked on. Talk about awkwa~~rd.

 **\- ? -**  
 _"My, my, that relentless spirit of yours - the way it infects people. You're something else Shohei, you know that?"_

To the Water section Shohei's gaze leered to the sight of a short guy, roughly four feet, nine inches, flaunting an emerald green suit and with black hair combed back. Shohei waved sporadically at the short guy.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Gerono! You made it, good to see you buddy!"_

Gerono met Shohei's excitement with acknowledging grin before sizing himself up. He crossed his arms and tilted his head up and to the left, giving focus more to his right profile.

 **\- Gerono -**  
 _"Vigilance, Shohei! Steel your resolve and bury your faults, you've got this. Above all else, do your best and have fun too."_

With a nod, Shohei agreed, throwing up a thumbs-up for reassurance. His opponent looked away from them both with surprise plastered on his face.

 **\- Brown-Haired Opponent -**  
 **(( Thinking... ))** _"These two, it's like they don't have a single negative bone in their bodies. I don't get it."_

Gerono diverted his gaze from the arena, turning his back toward it, with his mind in thought. He leaned against the guard railing.

 **\- Gerono -**  
 **(( Thinking... ))** _"Rumor has it, that man'll be here today. Of course should he be here, I'd make him out like..."_

A snap resounded from the fingers of his right hand, as if for emphasis.

 **\- Gerono -**  
 **(( Thinking... ))** _"... that. When standing opposed to a guy like him, you never forget the face. The arrogance of that man... I had him. I had him dead to rights!"_

Much like the Heimlich, a pressure surged outward from within as Gerono crossed his arms, and a sound of great weight was forced out of his mouth, much to the surprise of nearby fans.

 **\- Gerono -**  
 _"He got lucky, that's all!"_

Shohei, who couldn't help but hear his friend's shout, scratched his head in confusion as he didn't make out what exactly was said.

On high, Enja and Satoru took their respective positions on the platform, on the right and on the left of one another, and waved a call for attention to the enthusiastic crowd. It was about to begin. Stepping forward, Satoru outstretched his right arm, palm up and opened.

 **\- Satoru -**  
 _"And now, ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, let the Civ Clash Competition commence!"_

Enja inched up next to Satoru, moving her right hand closed in a fist up to her chest, and extended her left arm, palm up and opened, out to mirror her counterpart.

 **\- Enja -**  
 _"All duelists! Game, Start!"_

The crowd roared in great resonance - something of a sigh of relief that the wait was over at last. Both Enja and Satoru nodded in approval before the male announcer spoke, raising a remote and pressing a button. From above, for each side, a large screen systematically lowered at an angle; the screens blinked on simultaneously, their lights glaring down on the crowd. Needless to say.

 **\- Satoru -**  
 _"Now then for those of you still new to Kaijudo, as the preliminaries get underway, Enja and I will explain how to begin a duel in this great TCG."_

On the ground floor, players shuffle their decks and pass them across the tabletops for cuts.

 **\- Satoru -**  
 _"To begin, players shuffle their cards to get them nice and randomized, then they receive a cut or shuffle from their opponent. From there, they decide who gets to play first; anything within reason will do."_

Players are seen viewing for turn order. A closed fist is thrown simultaneously with a flat palm over the table. Shohei retracted his palm with much delight across his face, while his opponent chuckled nervously bringing his hand back to pat the back of his head. Next to them, dice collided with the white table surface accompanied by _"I got a seven"_ and _"I beat it with a ten. I'll go first."_

Satoru glanced left at Enja who continued from there.

 **\- Enja -**  
 _"Following turn order is the setting of five cards face-down before you or as they say in the biz: 'deploying shields.' These five cards are paramount to game play and the excitement of the game overall. We'll get more into that as the tournament proceeds. Then each player draws five cards and then, finally, the duel can begin."_

As if in response, many players are heard shouting with great vigor _"Game Start!"_ as Enja looked back at Satoru.

 **\- Satoru -**  
 _"As Enja stated, we'll keep you up to speed on game information as the event unfolds, so stay tuned."_

Anticipation mounted as the crowd grew evermore enthused by these current developments. Several turns into the first round were intense, especially for Shohei's table where his brown-haired adversary was on the receiving end of an aggressive board-state. Shohei turned his card sideways.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Bolgash Dragon, decimate his Reef-Eye and double break his shields!"_

Within a moment, the Reef-Eye kept from the top onto the discard pile followed by his opponent's last two shield cards hovering in midair. Catching them in both hands, the brown-haired boy consigned to his defeat, saying merely...

 **\- Brown-Haired Boy -**  
 _"Blast, there wasn't any."_

Shohei smiled at his worthy adversary with kind eyes, his opponent stared back in kind.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"It was a very close game, not to mention exciting and fun. I'm sorry it came to this but I wish you the best next time, man. But for now, Hyperspeed Dragon, finish it. Todomeda!"_

The brown-haired guy nodded approvingly so, returning a smile.

 **\- Brown-Haired Boy -**  
 _"No need to apologize dude. Losing is a bummer but it happens. Good luck, I hope you make it to the finals."_

The boy collected his cards from the table.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Thanks a lot! Maybe I'll see you again on the tournament circuit soon, yeah?"_

Stepping around the table after putting away his deck, the boy outstretched his opened hand to Shohei in good spirit.

 **\- Blond-Haired Kid -**  
 _"Oh, you will. I choked on my words for now but mark these: I'll improve and next time, I'll show you what for. Count on it!"_

Shohei clashed and tightened his hand with the Guy's.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"That's the spirit!"_

Their grasp loosened and the brown-haired kid rushed off. Shohei shouted as the boy ran.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Wait, what's your name?"_

The boy glanced back with a smile, his momentum nevertheless unceasing.

 **\- Janiro -**  
 _"It's Janiro Arwata! Chao, Shohei Kajiko!"_

Though the boy was now out of hearing range, Shohei spoke regardless.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Take care, Janiro."_

Looking up, his eyes found the skyroof's warm light gleaming down and he grinned happily.

Many minutes and fewer hours passed as the preliminaries dwindled down to a handful of players. Exchanges of good sportsmanship were had amid those who remained and the defeated, with tables being cleared slowly by the tournament staff working behind the scenes.

 **\- Enja -**  
 _"We are moments away from the conclusion of the preliminaries, with just a few duels left to determine the top eight moving onto the quarter-finals!"_

There was no short of cheering among the patrons in the crowd from this news.

Shohei shook hands with another exceptional player and good feelings were shared before that kid wandered off. From the Water section, Gerono smiled for his friend and shouted with both hands raised around his mouth.

 **\- Gerono -**  
 _"Nicely done Shohei!"_

The compliment reached Shohei's ears, though he was in closer proximity to the center of the main floor by this point, and returned a peace sign in acknowledgement.

Gerono crossed his arms with a grin still fresh upon his profile, but was suddenly wiped away by...

 **\- ? -**  
 _"Todomeda!"_

Gerono glanced upward with eyes widened, while Shohei and several nearby players snapped their heads and bodies around seeking the source of the vigorous shout.

A grunt had accompanied the shout as a young boy with red hair, white shirt, and green pants recoiled and his body found the floor. Despite the surprise, he composed himself and sat up, his vision met his victorious opponent's eyes.

Or rather, one in his adversary's case. The source of this stare stood at five feet, nine and a half inches, a teenage boy donned a black over-shirt and pants, both with silver trim, a tucked dark blue undershirt, and dark blue shoes with silver foxing and mid-sole. His hair - a midnight blue with three bleach-blond strands on both sides. His left eye, a dark purple and a silver-trimmed black eye-patch with intricate rivets across its centermost surface concealed his right eye.

The young boy cringed slightly, the blue-haired teenager's eye gazed at, and maybe even pierced, his form. Players nearby whispered among themselves at the spectacle before them.

The teenager's attention shifted to the tabletop, picking up his cards with both hands, then tapping them along the sides on the white surface. The silence broke.

 **\- Young Boy -**  
 _"Um, good game?"_

The tapping ceased instantly. The teenager's eye returned to the sight of the boy upon the cold floor before stepping around the table, moving his deck to his left hand with a Light civilization wristband adorning it. The young boy's anxiety grew as the teenager's presence loomed above him. An outstretched right hand awaited the boy, who then took it, and was lifted up by this teenager. A small smirk molded the teenager's face.

 **\- Blue-Haired Teenager -**  
 _"Sure, good game. Better luck next time."_

Before the boy could get in a word edgewise, the blue-haired teenager sauntered around and away from the boy, his destination: the entrance under the Darkness section of the arena. The teenager's deck, in his left hand, found its home within the white metal deck box at his waist and it closed mechanically.

The boy touched the Nature wristband on his left wrist and spoke, though he was unheard.

 **\- Young Boy -**  
 _"Yeah, thanks!"_

A number of quarter-finalists, which by now only eight players remained, surveyed the teenager walking away with prying and disdainful eyes. However, Shohei did not, rather he looked on in confusion as though he was trying to recall something. Then Shohei snapped his fingers, as if something had snapped in his own head. He uttered to himself.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"That's right, why is he leaving? We're suppose to stick around."_

Without further hesitation, his stride struck the floor heavily while he booked it to catch up with the teenage boy.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Hey, wait just a moment!"_

The boy with the eye-patch halted his advance just shy of the opening, then veered his focus toward Shohei; his left eye granting attention to the white-haired boy.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"Why are you walking away? The pairings for next round are starting soon."_

A smirk reformed his face as the teenager was made aware of Shohei's intentions.

 **\- Blue-Haired Teenager -**  
 _"Tsk, are you simple-minded? The Prelims are over and pairings aren't happening quite yet."_

From his left pocket, the blue-haired boy procured a tall program sheet and held it up. Shohei's eyes widened before he reached in and pulled out his copy from his right pocket. Shohei glanced over it as the teenager spoke.

 **\- Blue-Haired Teenager -**  
 _"There's a thirty minute break between the preliminary and quarter-final rounds. I'm going to rest for a moment if that's okay with you."_

Shohei nodded in agreement as his eyes finished surveying the program, then looked up to see the teenager advance once again while pocketing the program back from whence it came.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 **(( Thinking... ))** _"What's his beef, I wonder?"_

As if to answer his own internal inquiry, he shrugged before waltzing back over to the other players, particularly toward the young boy, pocketing his program all the while. Gerono, looking on from afar, couldn't help but air out his disdain for that blue-haired teenager.

 **\- Gerono -**  
 _"Hmm, One-Eye there rubs me the wrong way. How troublesome."_  
 **(( Thinking... ))** _"Come to think of it, he reminds me of... **him**."_

Michino and Harue looked to the teenager as he passed under the Darkness section's floor entrance. Then Michino glanced back to Shohei, who had pocketed his program, and exchanging words with the young boy from earlier. He turned off his touch-pad before speaking, placing it into its red satchel at his left side.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"He made it after all, wonder what went on. I hope everything's okay. Think we should check on him, Harue?"_

Crossing her arms, Harue exhaled a very stern statement.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"I suppose we should grace him with our presences. Although it wouldn't surprise me if he didn't know we were here."_

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Er, ok then. Let's move!"_

Michino zipped his red touch-pad satchel shut then wasted no more time by putting momentum in his steps as he rushed toward a lower level staircase. Harue was not so enthusiastic for different reasons. She sighed.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Michi, I admire your upbeat attitude... but I'm not running. I dislike it."_

The teenager took strides across the inner hallways of the stadium seeking no location in particular, merely using the lull of these moments to ease himself as the preliminaries were taxing on him. With each step his eye wandered to take in whatever sights there were to behold, especially when on-goers from the arena stands would pass through. He caught glimpses of the smiling faces of children and adults, showcasing their satisfaction and amusement of the event thus far.

 _ **"So convenient an opportunity..."**_

A loud ring resounded.

His head lowered somewhat and his hands found refuge within his pockets as he marched across the shiny marble floor. Echoes were heard in two distinct successions: one of haste and one of calm, as these two pairs of footsteps drew near. The teenager about-faced in prompt to this and glared.

Forced gasps for air exited the quicker set of footstep's source, Michino, who stood slightly bowed with his hands upon his knees. A fair fathoms away, the second set belonging to Harue had followed behind. She couldn't help but shake her head before she halted her advance next to Michino.

 **\- Blue-Haired Teenager -**  
 _"You guys made it."_

Michino summoned his strength and stood upright and tall, eager to respond.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Long time, no see, Sagiri. And yeah, did you expect us to?"_

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"I didn't, quite the surprise though."_

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"See? I told you so, Michi."_

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"I, that is, well... I'm sorry. It's good to see you both, Michi and Harue."_

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Is that all, Sagiri?"_

Sagiri stepped back once or twice to put some distance between him and what he felt was Harue's oncoming wrath. He was right and yes, it was in vain. Harue advanced in an angry posture, getting almost in Sagiri's face.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Sorry, huh? Is that how you express enthusiasm for your friends these days, Sagiri?! How reclusive do you have to be that you can't be bothered to be happy we showed up at all?! Just think about it a moment."_

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Harue... you..."_

Before Michino formulated that thought fully, Sagiri interjected with a wave of his left hand as he lowered his head with Harue's shadow lying upon him. His hair hid most of his face from view.

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"No, Michi it's okay. I deserved it and you're right as always Harue. A sorry won't cut it but I really missed you guys..."_

Sagiri's head rose and Harue took a step back. A smile painted Sagiri's face as he continued speaking.

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"... and I'm glad you came."_

Harue closed her eyes for a moment, adjusted the glasses on her nose, opened her eyes then smiled. The tension subsided for the time being. She crossed her arms at her stomach.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Hehe, anyway guys, what's say we take this somewhere else before deciding to unload some more dirty laundry? Besides..."_

Michino brought to the group's attention voices that were heard from around the corner. A few teenager boys and girls had taken up eavesdropping as that whole situation progressed. Statements like _"are they boyfriend and girlfriend"_ and _"she chewed him out big time"_ can be slightly heard. Sagiri and Harue blushed a little while Michino continued much louder.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"... I wouldn't like for anyone I don't know to be listening in! Isn't that right, you guys over there?!"_

For some reason, one of the boys peeked around the corner to be caught in the sights of the three and recoiled in surprise.

 **\- Nosy Teenager Boy -**  
 _"Crap, busted!"_

 **\- Nosy Teenager Girl -**  
 _"Let's vamoose!"_

Loud footsteps thundered down the hall as the teenagers got out of dodge.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"I think I recognize that boy just then. He's from our school."_

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"Glad you did, I didn't."_

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Of course you wouldn't, you haven't been..."_

Michino pushed Harue toward one of the empty room, through he was met with some resistance before she finally got the message. Sagiri's left eye widened as he followed.

The door closed shut and the lights systematically came on, as they surveyed the details of the room. Some paintings filled this room and plenty of chairs and tables about gave it more appeal than they could ever have gotten from the hallway outside. Sagiri plopped down on the couch at its middle, while Harue took residence upon the right arm of the said couch and Michino, as he began speaking, crossed his legs under him in a chair facing the couch on the opposite side of a table before them.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Hey Sagiri, I know you've been seeing family lately and that's good, it's important for times like these. But you shouldn't be such a stranger, we're here too and we worry."_

Harue rested her hands upon her lap as she looked left at Sagiri.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"He's right you know. We are worried and it's not just us that feel this way. Many of your classmates and teachers are the same. Do you know how many times Narima-sensei dropped by your house?"_

Sagiri took a deep breath before responding.

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"Quite a few according to what Father told me."_

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Well if you knew, why didn't you do something? Contact her, show up at school, anything. It's unhealthy to wallow on like this."_

Sagiri lowered his head again and closed his eye. Michino saw through that and vocally put himself between Sagiri and the scolding force that is Harue.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Don't misunderstand though, I'm sure she's only saying it like that because she cares, maybe more than you believe. I mean, we can barely scratch the surface of what you're going through, but you have to level with us man. And this game, it's..."_

Sagiri raised his head and cut Michino off with a retort.

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"... a hobby, a distraction to keep my mind off things. It's only natural, isn't it? To have a hobby that is, if it helps."_

Harue sighed, looking deeply at Sagiri at her left, who not only looked back but somehow felt her stare.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"I thought it might have been more than that, but..."_

Harue smiled at Sagiri.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"... if it's like that then we support you. In fact, we picked the game up a week ago so once this is over, we should hang out again like old times. Wouldn't that be nice?"_

Sagiri nodded in approval of the suggestion, giving a smirk of positivism in addition to that.

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"Of course. And again, I'm sorry I had avoided you guys for so long. I'll make it up to you both, I promise."_

Harue and Michino looked at each other and nodded, as if they had the same thought, then they both stood in unison, and maneuvered to stand before Sagiri looking down at him and smiled. With Michino at left and Harue at right, they both uttered together.

 **\- Harue and Michino -**  
 _"We forgive you!"_

Sagiri's left eye widened and he returned a grin. Harue leaned forward and pointed at Michino with her right thumb, trying to whisper but to no avail.

 **\- Harue -**  
 **(( Whispering... ))** _"Also, would it kill you to also school this boy in dueling? He's awful."_

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Oy!"_

Harue raised herself up as Sagiri laughed and nodded in agreement.

An announcement filled the halls and rooms of the stadium at great and loud volume, breaking all silence that there was left to be found. The group raised their heads to take it in better. The voice was, in fact, Enja's.

 **\- Enja -**  
 _"Attention! Will all quarter-finalists please report to the arena floor immediately! The quarter-finals are about to begin! Get a move on, people! That is all."_

The three lowered their heads. Sagiri abandoned the comfyness of the couch where he sat and stood among his friends.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Well it's time. Good luck out there Sagiri, break a leg... or well, I mean don't actually break... um, I mean the floors are shiny so there's a chance..."_

This disaster of stumbling words by Michino was quickly resolved by Harue who grabbed Michino by the back of his collar and dragged him toward the door.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"He gets it Michi, you bone-head! Geez, let's go..."_

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Wait, Harue. I wasn't..."_

Harue opened the door and shoved Michino through it before he could finish. With back toward Sagiri, Harue jutted her head right looking over her shoulder. Her left arm reached out into the hall keeping Michino at bay while she spoke.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Good luck Sagiri. We'll be rooting for you."_

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"Thanks Harue."_

They exchanged brief smiles between one another before Harue walks out the door. Michino's voice couldn't help but be heard before the door closed.

 **\- Michino -**  
 _"Whatcha do that for?!"_

Harue retorted as the door came to a close.

 **\- Harue -**  
 _"Vengeance for earlier, Michi. Vengeance!"_

The door finally closed and Sagiri let out a laugh. Afterwards, he composed himself by closing his left eye, inhaling deeply and exhaling. He opened his eye, which was now spiked with determination.

 _ **"... that by its unveiling..."**_

Sagiri found and opened the door, passing through, and closing it, returning to that shiny yet unimpressive hallway from before. As he headed back for the arena's lower floor, he saw patrons navigating their way through the hallways on their way back to their seats in the stands. The bass of muffled, amplified voices are felt through the corridor though incomprehensible - the announcers must be hyping up the crowd again. The familiarity of the arena's luminescence became a returning companion to this teenager's eye as he stepped out from below the Darkness section onto the main floor.

 _ **"... the truth will accompany it,..."**_

The glances of a few qualifying duelists met the teenager, some fixated on him with worry-filled eyes while others basking in the aire of their own confidence with no care in the world for him. Shohei checked Sagiri out once more and their eyes met. Sagiri nodded to Shohei who returned it with slight amusement. A smile grew across Shohei's face.

 _ **"... of that I'm certain."**_

Michino and Harue returned to their designated positions in the Nature section and scoped out the competition, then looked back to Sagiri and waved. Sagiri noticed and waved back.

On the Water section side of the stands, Gerono glared disdainfully at Sagiri.

 **\- Gerono -**  
 _"Only two matches to go before finals. Let's just see how far you get, One-Eye."_

 _ **"I will discover the truth,..."**_

Sagiri glanced over his seven adversaries as pairings were handed out among them. They assumed their positions at the tables, now with only four left standing twenty feet from the middle of the arena.

The players shuffled up, cut one another's decks, vied for turn order, and deployed shields, then drew five cards. Sagiri's opponent with green hair, an orange shirt and black jeans gave Sagiri a confident smirk. A stare-down began between them, as they both held their cards in hand awaiting the start.

On the upper-level of the stands of the Fire section, a young teenage girl stepped out from the shadows of the entry-way dressed in a long blue blouse and green shorts that extended to her knees then followed shortly after by an elderly gentleman wearing an old school uniform hat and a dark-colored coat. He remained in the shadows, propping himself up against the right wall inside the entry-way and looked down to the main floor as the event entered its next stage.

 _ **"... I must."**_

With all players in position, Satoru and Enja extend their arms outward, and with great force they shout.

 **\- Enja and Satoru -**  
 _"And now, let the C3 quarter-finals begin!"_

Every player down below responded with vigor.

 **\- All Players -  
** _"Game, Start!"_

 **"For my mother."**

============================================================  
KAIJUDO: THE CONVERGENCE - Chapter 01 :: "The Expected: Part 1" / END  
============================================================

============  
\- NEXT TIME -  
============

Satoru raised a fist in the air, rousing the crowd into a frenzy.

 **\- Satoru -**  
 _"And the quarter-finals are underway..."_

Sagiri brought his hand back from the table to clutch a card from among the ones in his hand, staring toward his opponent very seriously.

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"Never have I been stifled by any obstacle, what makes you any different?"_

The green-haired adversary across from Sagiri revealed a Root Trap in his right hand, flashing a smirk and uttered.

 **\- Green-Haired Adversary -**  
 _"Your overconfidence is admirably naive. Shall I bring you back to reality?"_

Enja's face filled with surprise as she looked on from above at the duelists down below.

 **\- Enja -**  
 _"The determination of these duelists are something alright..."_

Lifting a card from his hand, the card's distance covering half his face, Shohei uttered.

 **\- Shohei -**  
 _"So wherein lies your strength?"_

Sagiri slammed both of his hands upon the black tabletop with cards still in his left hand, his eye filled with anger as he looked up.

 **\- Sagiri -**  
 _"I have reasons you can't begin to understand!"_

=================  
\- NEXT TIME / END -  
=================


End file.
